"The Real Revolution;" Sermon for the 3rd Sunday after Pentecost by Nicole Collins

What is Jesus really talking about?  Are we hearing it 2,000 years later still like the apostles heard it?  Or have we finally perchance, owned up to the real revolution Jesus speaks of being entirely Spiritual?  The war rages onward... the battle between good and evil and the turf is your heart!  BTW, Satan is NOT a metaphor, he’s real and this is something we have to stop placing on the backburner of our discernment as “functional theological mythology...”  The graceless wilderness with its fruit of destruction is ever present and growing.

Now that this has been put out in the open~ let’s look at the texts! Essentially chapter ten of Matthew begins a whole “instructional course,” given by Jesus to the disciples on how to begin active discipleship.  Mind you, this beginning dialogue makes a lot of sense, it’s tangible and “doable” to our logical, rational and physical understanding of the world.  This is so till today’s Gospel text where Jesus flips the focus into truly being about spiritual preparation and the very real spiritual battlefield!

I would have loved to been a fly on the wall to see the disciples’ faces looking perplexed and troubled by wondering if Jesus is now instructing them to prepare for war...  Well, yes he IS but just like many things we have learned and grown with in the Gospel of Jesus it IS SPIRITUAL!

But we find ourselves saying: Oh why go there... Do we really hafta? Yikes, it’s too much work, it’s easier to make it an empirical battle mediated and distributed by the corporate church and even better still, to make it personal, specific and transactional!  It’s only logical or really better said—only human... but then what Jesus says here actually doesn’t make sense?  He’s not here to bring peace?  He wants to divide families? Why?

The following chapter continues our human-misunderstanding of Jesus’ Messiahship and call to discipleship for all when even his own cousin and herald, John the Baptist... sends his disciples to ask if he’s the One or not, should we wait for another? Aren’t we still kinda doing that now? The “modern” church has essentially tried to revise Jesus to be merely a rejected prophet sometimes divine, but mostly human, social activist and well the other stuff... (requiring FAITH, that is) it’s in our liturgies, in our creeds... But maybe we don’t really believe since its NOT physically tangible or transactional.

We need to look deeply into that mirror of the Law in order to “do spiritual battle” fight the Evil One’s stumbling blocks and truly change (SPIRITUALLY) into the children of Grace, Jesus would give his life for.  The New kind of Law Jesus begins to preach and teach is to enact spiritual surgery on the heart and upon our discernment and volition (the mind.) Jesus tool to reach us is the sword of the Spirit through his tongue.

St. Paul starts to bring our problem into greater focus by teaching the Romans the purpose of Christ Jesus’ Law which is to point us to our sin, what he died for and how we are to LIVE for Him and for our neighbor as His disciple.  Taking up our cross yet alone taking on the challenge of who we are and where we need to grow in order to go with the gospel is tough work.  Finding the Kingdom of God’s seed buried deep in the seat of the soul is entirely SPIRITUAL not tangible BUT attainable!

This entire week has been a week of blessings, for I have been serving all three communities’ VBS mission and discipleship projects.  Through the Joliet church I have been a witness to the work of many youthful hands assisting this community to reach out expansively into the surrounding neighborhoods.

They began their work digging out the garden, planting new plants, painting, assembling and singing with a joyful noise as we went with them flyering the neighborhoods!  The shirts, many of the youth came wearing before the official mission shirt was ready to don had the saying: “Live Generously.”  What a beautiful thought!  This saying, however, just like Jesus and Paul’s treatise upon our contemplation, is complex and difficult to understand.

In a physically tangible sense it means giving money, being a philanthropist, or just merely being generous to others...  On an entirely different level, spiritually, it could mean an open heart expressing grace as fruits of the spirit: compassion, love, kindness, peace, etc.  A whole New way of expressing the self which comes out of being regenerated: transformed—willingly accountable through faith to live into God’s Will for the world as His disciple!

In continuing to reflect upon the children and families that came to serve on mission week in all churches serving; the face of need was so very apparent in those we served...  What makes a minister though? This was the question I was left with when just the other day engaging in near borderline “unfriendly” fire with a pastoral peer.  Their perspective of the church aligns completely with the “modern/ liberal church,” which in a sense is all really about politics and ulterior-motivated, focused ministries.  It’s all about intellectual moral theology in action and less to do with actually even broaching the CORE of what need activism done upon it—the heart. Compassion is the fruit born of the spirit.

Erring on the side of Grace, I chose to truncate the online debate, not so much for the understated, finger pointing of: “I know you’re a conservative, “Darth-Vader” club Lutheran who’s this and that and so on.... & I’m a part of the “good guys”—the socialist, for the people’s desires, wants & needs Lutheran club...”  What about Pastoral care?  Accusing someone of not doing anything because of their Biblical focus on Spiritual CHANGE... is like the zealots angry with Jesus that he didn’t turn into being the “warrior” Messiah that they were hoping he would be.

2,000 years later however, the SPIRITUAL warrior Words from Jesus lips are indeed LIVING on as both a timeless challenge and tension upon our yoke of burden we must face as His disciples! Whereas political activism in the guise or superficial use of Christ passes by as a moment in history and a dividing rod to TRUE unity for the selfless sake of the Gospel!  Tattooed, cursing pastors don’t minister more than become a trend for intellectual discord and division on what the Gospel of Jesus through our hands and feet should “look” like or “become.”

I was a practicing visual artist and poet for over 20 years till the Lord spoke to me at that fateful service some eleven years ago and my ENTIRE life changed to be used for a greater purpose... NOT just for my sake but TRULY for Christ Jesus sake and out of love for the other.  It has always been and will always be about Jesus...  Satan works hard upon me daily to only strive harder to go back and intentionally reflect, confess, repent and renew for I AM answering Jesus call to my heart, not culture, instinct, human nature or “logic.”

The first battleground needs to be internal.  A true pastor for Christ Jesus, true disciple to His Gospel must become a skilled surgeon to work upon the hearts and minds of their flock to CHANGE inwardly to bear the spiritual fruit necessary to CHANGE THE WORLD externally! 

Instead we have boutique theologies, revised and divided corporate expressions of faith and nicely fitted labels of bondage to wrap around each other for the sake of worldly politics, transaction and agenda also known as—the death of the Gospel.  The priesthood of all believers needs to own up to its core and calling...  This can only happen FIRST & FOREMOST in the heart where Christ Jesus is most assuredly placed at its center!  He is our internal guide, as the Holy Spirit—empowering, encouraging and leading us onward into the spiritual warfare victory against Satan and his continual efforts against us.

Through “the school of Athens for Jesus;” I learned I needed to deconstruct this intellectualism to TRULY HEAR & LIVE DEEPLY the Gospel of GRACE which is heart knowledge—developed and built by suffering, tenacity and TRANSFORMATION. 

AMEN

Sunday June 29^th, 2014; 3^rd Sunday after Pentecost; Year A; Proper 8; SOLA Lectionary  NicoleCollins

Psalm 119:153-160; Jeremiah 28:5-9; Romans 7:1-13; & Matthew 10:34-42

http://youtu.be/6XAIe5lWiR8

"A New Kind Of Freedom;" Sermon for Sunday June 22nd, 2014 By Nicole Collins

Jeremiah’s passage this Sunday sounds like that inner voice we hear of all our fears, doubts, despair and anxiety.  Anxiety can be a killer physically or spiritually or both for that matter.  It is an aspect of the bondage around our souls constraining us with burdens we really don’t have to bear but overcome through Christ Jesus who indeed gives us strength!

It is in many ways that inner voice that St. Paul is trying to pastorally guide within the hearts and minds of the Romans in today’s epistle.  There are many “ah-ha” moments in this text not just for the very fabric of the Reformation’s magna carta of Christian liberty but the reality of Grace as living and suffering in spiritual formation to the New Nature. 

It is living fully accountable to the daily spiritual warfare struggle that we are both saint and sinner.  I can’t recall the cartoon but there’s a really clever and funny cartoon of a man with a little saintly figure of himself on one shoulder whispering into his ear and the other of course a little devil figure... 

We ALL have those little voices or back and forth bantering between the heart and the mind what we need to own up to in doing, being, living as a disciple of Jesus.  Instinct is the easiest place to go to, however... it seems rational, logical and as the Romans understood it, like the cliché:  “If it feels right, just do it!”

We’ve allowed the Old Nature to run amuck with that of course to the detriment of waning in being committed, intentional and genuinely faithful to CHANGE for Jesus sake and our neighbor.  Jesus’ instruction in today’s Gospel is hard to hear for it truly challenges us just like Paul in his instructions to the Romans.  For instance, verse 28 is a “Pandora’s Box” to the truth of what Jesus wants us to grow to know/ live into—the New Nature: “²⁸Do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul; rather fear him who can destroy both soul and body in hell.”

My understanding of this verse is the choice of either living into the lifestyle of Grace or harboring and festering the development of hell—the reality of a graceless wilderness.  A graceless wilderness is a lawless world built by sin, fed by Satan and multiplied by our lack of doing anything otherwise.  This could be truthfully, a lack of boundaries which ironically leads to bondage and death...

Who we are, if we profess that we are disciples of Jesus, St. Paul says it best: “¹³No longer present your members to sin as instruments of wickedness, but present yourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to life, and present your members to God as instruments of righteousness.”

This is the grounding, growth into that painful, challenging journey to BE/ become fully-developed with Christ at the center of your lives—The New Nature.  The refuge of God is His new understanding of Law as obedience—act of volition, to transform from sinner to saint through Grace.  The reality of Grace given by Christ Jesus, the totality of boundless love and amazing freedom from sin, death and the devil is redemption; what a mighty refuge it has proven to be!

This past week, I witnessed on the side lines, a rather unfortunate dispute between two volunteers of a retreat for incarcerated family members’ ministry.  The conflict did not end in a good way at all for either individual... The air was thick with negativity, anger and distain. “Coulda, shoulda, woulda” is the song I’m sure, that played over and over in their minds after the bile, accusations, “name-calling” and anger subsided.  Obviously the Old Nature with its logic, instinct and “if it just feels right, do it,” mentality had dominion over this week’s meeting...

What was the final outcome however? A folded weekend, disappointed future attendees and no ministries to be done in fellowship again with these individuals and those of whom they were to serve! In the name of Jesus they began this ministry now in the name of sin, bondage; their hopes in serving others merely served themselves to discord, contempt and maligned perceptions of what they refused to do!  What they refused to do was to change, compromise, acquiesce through humility to love and serve God and neighbor together in true unity as the Body.

Verse 14 from this week’s letter to the Romans truly resonates here: “¹⁴For sin will have no dominion over you, since you are not under law but under grace.” If those had erred on the side of Grace, perhaps there would be a completely different outcome—living into a New kind of freedom as what Paul continues in teaching the Romans:

“¹⁵What then? Should we sin because we are not under law but under grace? By no means! ¹⁶Do you not know that if you present yourselves to anyone as obedient slaves, you are slaves of the one whom you obey, either of sin, which leads to death, or of obedience, which leads to righteousness? ¹⁷But thanks be to God that you, having once been slaves of sin, have become obedient from the heart to the form of teaching to which you were entrusted, ¹⁸and that you, having been set free from sin, have become slaves of righteousness.”

Being obedient from the heart is operating first from that internal church.  This internal church as I’ve often said before in many a sermon, many a prayer is where the Holy Spirit works and where the seed of the New Nature is planted.  Our future life lived into the reality of Grace is heart knowledge.  This is entirely spiritual as we are in essence, spiritual beings.  The heart however needs to connect to the mind to live into being a “body” within the greater Body to bear forth the Kingdom of God.

Realizing and growing “heart knowledge” as a disciple of Jesus is allowing the Holy Spirit of God to truly have dominion above and beyond you, human vices, base-needs and desires.  We have so many wonderful examples throughout history of individuals who’ve devoted their lives to Christ and His purposes and plans for us... It should example for us the reality of the battle between good and evil that we have to be accountable to deal with daily.

If you have been following the news lately, Christian persecution is not only on the rise but showing some success in its path of destruction. From stories like the Sudanese Christian woman imprisoned and being sentenced to death to Pastor Saaed imprisoned and near death in an Iranian prison for the past two plus years.  There are many Christians out there in the world who are standing firm in their faith.  They are willingly embracing persevering their suffering for the sake of a higher commandment, Law—the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

The Words from Jesus in this week’s Gospel amplifies our discipleship challenge in regards to a New Kind of Freedom and a New kind of righteousness: “²⁶So have no fear of them; for nothing is covered up that will not be uncovered, and nothing secret that will not become known. ²⁷What I say to you in the dark, tell in the light; and what you hear whispered, proclaim from the housetops. ³²Everyone therefore who acknowledges me before others, I also will acknowledge before my Father in heaven; ³³but whoever denies me before others, I also will deny before my Father in heaven.”

We all will have moments like the individuals I spoke about earlier, where the “shoulda, woulda, coulda” voice of regret could have been avoided all together... especially if the real battle was realized and fought from a place of grace. We are vulnerable creatures who are both saint and sinner as well as we truly are children of grace.  Realizing our spiritual identity as children of grace is a constant process of reflection, repentance, confession and renewal= CHANGED also known as the New Nature; YOURS in, with and through Christ.

AMEN

Sunday June 22^nd, 2014; 2^nd Sunday after Pentecost; Year A; SOLA Lectionary 

 Nicole Collins

Psalm 91:1-16; Jeremiah 20:7-13; Romans 6:12-23; Matthew 10:5, 21-33

http://youtu.be/rzpxMFNjvv4

"Destinations;" Sermon for Holy Trinity Sunday; June 15th, 2014 by Nicole Collins

Destiny is a Pandora’s box of meaning for each and every one of us.  The Word, destiny alone is the only thing that is truthfully shared. Before there was the “Body,” every ‘body’ was planned, created and given a capacity or motivation to build upon a lifetime’s journey of realizing the Father, Son and Holy Spirit in their lives. Your very existence IS a means of Grace!

We live in a three dimensional world, but do we think three-dimensionally? Or better said still—Do we think, feel or operate through a Trinitarian lens in all that we “Do,” say, Be/become in our lives lived as disciples of Christ? Operating from this lens opens the eyes of the heart and the mind of the believer to discover and build upon that very foundation established by God.  This very foundation is to live into that mission commissioned by God: be/become the children of Grace sharing this in order to transform the face of the earth.

The account of the creation story shared in this Sunday’s lessons is a visual “love poem” of God’s creativity at work.  This creativity flowed as light and goodness, crafting the world from nothingness to purpose, from emptiness to wholeness, all in His measure and capacity of time.  Nature is God’s manifestation of love and Grace.  We are of nature, as well, though we definitely fall away from realizing this humbling fact thanks to the evil one’s successful work upon us to become “worlds unto ourselves...”

Cursillo is the Spanish word meaning “short course.”  Life, by no means is a “short course.”  However life shaped by a Loving heavenly Father/parent, redeemed by Christ Jesus and encouraged, empowered, enlightened and embraced by the Holy Spirit is a short course relived daily as we grow and go with the Gospel.

Growing into Going with the Gospel takes a reality check of where you are and who you are on that mountain top...  On that mountain top looking outward into the peace and beauty of God’s great creation where the sky is boundless and hopeful.  A sky no human darkness can crush when your heart is built with tenacious bricks of faith and the mortar is your daily walk with God as reflection, confession, repentance and renewal.

Living in the world but not being of the world may have been easy Words for Jesus to say in just one of many of his instructional moments he gave the disciples to Go boldly and make disciples of all nations... but in reality, quite difficult for us to hear deeply, realize deeply and DO.

There is so much around us, beyond sin.... that oppresses us, clutters our lives away from God where we avoid that critical spiritual tuck-pointing needed to our own stability as disciples of Jesus, because it is too costly.  The bricks are still there but precariously rest atop one another, where one could perhaps even pierce straight through to the vulnerable core of who you are deeply—as only God the Father, creator, redeemer and advocate knows you ARE.

The other day I was talking with someone about different cursillo communities across America—their efforts and movements today. Being man-made retreats of a “short-course” in Christian leadership; many have fallen prey to either being measuring stations of “hierarchical leadership” or to frankly being exclusionary “Elk-clubs” for lay Christians to boast upon their faith and “righteous-accomplishments.”

Patience and perseverance wins the race... but what race are YOU running?  Who is more or less the victor? Satan or Christ Jesus?!  It gets harder and harder to hear that Gracious, peaceful voice of God firming your foundation and building your heart with a humble and empowered sense of self... especially when we allow the world to continually bring us down, tell us we’re not worthy, we’re not good enough... we’re not the right sex, faith or person.  We reign in the darkness upon each other and ourselves to Satan’s delight.

Now a few weeks back, I am still spiritually there over looking that mountain-side cliff seeing nothing but trees, rock and sky...  All of the darkness and its clutter, was for the moment gone. God’s Holy Spirit pieced the Words flowing from the heart, together affirming, empowering and bringing glorious light upon me... reminding me of His commission and mission He Alone has for just my life alone.  This went above and beyond human authorities, municipalities, degrees and doctrine; It WAS a redemptive moment realizing the totality of God in, with and through my life as His disciple!

No one has authority over and above that for it is from GOD Alone as GRACE Alone through Faith Alone.  A faith built by suffering is the cost of discipleship especially in a world run by Satan—steeped in darkness, greed and indifference.  You cannot have a “cookie cutter faith” as well as a “cookie-cutter presence” in the world—this is the death of the Gospel!  You need to LIVE into the lifestyle of Grace fully accountable to the whole of who you truly ARE, whether or not “it doesn’t fit the mold,” or “makes someone uncomfortable enough,” to persecute and victimize you.

A couple of churches ago, the closing doxology performed beyond familiarity breeds contempt... I confess, that I had a love/ hate relationship with.  I really hated “Go Ye there forth and make disciples...”  Every time we would start to sing it, Pastor D would turn around since he knew my secret and we would both share a sarcastic smile...  It wasn’t the music minister’s fault it was just an awful tune that became painful after awhile to sing week after week!

This is trivia but the big point behind even this little example, is that there are much greater things in our lives authentically and truthfully shaping our discipleship journey whether sojourning together or (seemingly) on our own.  We were created for much greater plans! BUT, these plans need to be realized and built upon—that firm foundation of the New Nature—the person, child of GRACE God wants you to be/ become.

This foundation is only penetrated, shaped and transformed by and for God—this is your union with Him while you grow to go. It is a three-dimensionally-built vision: Father, Son and Holy Spirit!  Whatever God leads you into to as realizing your very special purpose in the world for the Glory of His Gospel—you need to be the steward of that foundation.

Living the faith-filled journey bears its fate in time.  It is messy, painful, shaky and at times profoundly vulnerable but it is God’s destination for His creation—New Creatures—children of Grace!  Children of God who are in the world but striving to not be of it, being and becoming practitioners of Love for God and neighbor, as Jesus says: “¹⁹Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, ²⁰and teaching them to obey everything that I have commanded you. And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

AMEN

Holy Trinity Sunday (1^st Sunday after Pentecost); Father’s Day; Year A; SOLA Lectionary  Nicole Collins

Psalm 8; Genesis 1:1-2:4; Acts 2:14, 22-36 & Matthew 28:16-20; (WELS): 2 Corinthians 13:11-14

http://youtu.be/b_VpuwRFOA4

A S.O.A.P. Series around St. Paul’s 1st Letter to the Corinthians; 1 Corinthians 15:45-58 By Nicole Collins

Scripture|| Observation|| Application|| Prayer

Beginning with Thursday May 8^th, 2014

1 Corinthians 15:45-58

⁴⁵Thus it is written, “The first man, Adam, became a living being”; the last Adam became a life-giving spirit. ⁴⁶But it is not the spiritual that is first, but the physical, and then the spiritual. ⁴⁷The first man was from the earth, a man of dust; the second man is from heaven. ⁴⁸As was the man of dust, so are those who are of the dust; and as is the man of heaven, so are those who are of heaven. ⁴⁹Just as we have borne the image of the man of dust, we will also bear the image of the man of heaven. ⁵⁰What I am saying, brothers and sisters, is this: flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable.

⁵¹Listen, I will tell you a mystery! We will not all die, but we will all be changed, ⁵²in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed. ⁵³For this perishable body must put on imperishability, and this mortal body must put on immortality. ⁵⁴When this perishable body puts on imperishability, and this mortal body puts on immortality, then the saying that is written will be fulfilled: “Death has been swallowed up in victory.” ⁵⁵“Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?” ⁵⁶The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. ⁵⁷But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.

⁵⁸Therefore, my beloved, be steadfast, immovable, always excelling in the work of the Lord, because you know that in the Lord your labor is not in vain.

Today’s Verses Scripture: ⁴⁵Thus it is written, “The first man, Adam, became a living being”; the last Adam became a life-giving spirit.

Observation: Christ Jesus, the New Adam became both the propitiation for our sin and spiritually freed us to New Life.

Application: We are both children of Adam and Children of God as known as both saint and sinner.  This is two realities of life, of living and it is realizing and living into what the resurrection means for us sinners that frees us to New Life potentiality. 

Prayer:  Gracious & Loving God,

Help us to daily reflect on the perfect example Jesus gave to us

Both in his three year ministry here on earth

And through the power His death and resurrection eternally has given us

Freedom from the bondage of sin, death and the devil

Freedom to battle between the Old Nature (the worldly Adam) and living obediently and intentionally

Into the New Nature (the New Adam exampled by Christ)

May we spiritually transform to realize that being fully alive is being and becoming

Children of Grace living into the lifestyle of Grace

In Your Most Precious Name We Pray—

AMEN

For  Sunday May 11^th, 2014

Today’s Verses Scripture: ⁴⁶But it is not the spiritual that is first, but the physical, and then the spiritual. ⁴⁷The first man was from the earth, a man of dust; the second man is from heaven.

Observation: We are truly physical beings here on earth but we DO have a spiritual side.  Our reality in the flesh is temporal but what we have exampled through Jesus in developing ourselves spiritually is profound—a heavenly goal.

Application: We are limited creatures of this world but our attitude need not be.  Our attitude can be transformed through spiritual formation, intentional discipline to the will and example of Our Lord; thus striving for holiness through our faith lived in the light of GRACE. 

Prayer:  Gracious & Loving God,

We are to return to dust in the physical understanding of this world

Our spirit, however, can strive for a more heaven-ward goal

We can grow by being obedient to your love and Grace shaping our hearts

Our Hearts are the seat of the soul, our unique place of identity and of vulnerability

We are both saint and sinner, this is true

But you can guide and guard us to live into the lifestyle of Grace

As we commit our lives to as Gracious and grateful children

In Your Most Precious Name We Pray—

AMEN

For Tuesday May 13^th, 2014

Today’s Verses Scripture: ⁴⁸As was the man of dust, so are those who are of the dust; and as is the man of heaven, so are those who are of heaven.

Observation: “Was and is,” are two distinctions in discerning our formational path in following Christ.

Application: Living into the New Nature is a journey of discernment between willfulness and willingness, between “have to” and “want to.”  Growing in our faith intentionally to choose to be/ become fully developed children of Grace is a lifetime’s journey.

Prayer:  Gracious & Loving God,

We are a people who need to intentionally move on from the past

And move into the present to be/ become who you need us to be: children of Grace

When we operate with Grace building into our hearts

We truly, truthfully live into the New Nature you have given us

We truly, truthfully listen and obey the Holy Spirit’s guidance

To not be worldly but other-worldly in our love, compassion, kindness, generosity and all that we do

In all that we say for your sake and for our neighbor

In Your Most Precious Name We Pray—

AMEN

For  Tuesday May 20^th, 2014

Today’s Verses Scripture: ⁴⁹Just as we have borne the image of the man of dust, we will also bear the image of the man of heaven. ⁵⁰What I am saying, brothers and sisters, is this: flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable.

Observation: We are human but bear the image and expectation of God. Our humanity alone cannot transcend our earthly condition.

Application: We must strive to live towards God’s expectations of us since we are His children.  We must realize our limitations but operate, be empowered completely from faith.

Prayer:  Gracious & Loving God,

May we humbly realize our humanity

With its limitations and its potential

May our humanity strive to be/ become children of Grace

In formation towards your will and precepts for our lives

May our hearts grow over and above our worldliness and its temptations

To have you central in our lives

To know your Grace as fuel for all that we do, say and become

In Your Most Precious Name We Pray—

AMEN

For  Thursday May 22^nd, 2014

Today’s Verses Scripture: ⁵¹Listen, I will tell you a mystery! We will not all die, but we will all be changed, ⁵²in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed.

Observation: At the end of days, the mystery of transformation will be revealed that we are indeed spiritual beings soon to be truly united with God the Father. 

Application: The life we are to seek as children of Grace is the reality of our spiritual nature.  We are of flesh and bone as well as our identity moniker is the soul (heart)—the seat of the Holy Spirit where the Lord has planted our New Nature.  We need to stop either being afraid of this reality or stop avoiding it with false idolatry to the intellect and earthly self-absorbed, indifferent “dead” things.  We need to realize that not only the end of days will reveal this ultimate mystery and truth to us; but the fruit of our lives lived in union with Christ will realize our spiritual nature.

Prayer:  Gracious & Loving God,

Help us Lord to not be afraid of what you have planted in our hearts to realize

May we remember that we are children of Grace

Blessed with the Holy Spirit to nurture our potential to transform

A regenerative life-time process of living into the lifestyle of Grace

Help us to realize the truth of our formation in, with and through you

May we truly die to the Old and Rise with you—completely, fully New

Joining you in your Kingdom

In Your Most Precious Name We Pray—

AMEN

For  Tuesday May 27^th, 2014

Today’s Verses Scripture: ⁵³For this perishable body must put on imperishability, and this mortal body must put on immortality. ⁵⁴When this perishable body puts on imperishability, and this mortal body puts on immortality, then the saying that is written will be fulfilled: “Death has been swallowed up in victory.”

Observation: The New Life we put on or better said—take on; IS Christ Jesus victory through the cross and resurrection realized in, with and through our lives lived IN Grace.

Application: We must look beyond metaphor here and think purposely about our spiritual identity.  Are we ready, willing and able to LIVE into the lifestyle of Grace?  It literally means a spiritual death of the Old Nature and a Resurrection into the New Creature planted within each and every one of us to BE reaped!  How can Christ Jesus BE victorious is he is not realized within us?!

Prayer:  Heavenly Father,

Help us to trample Satan underfoot and realize the Victory of GRACE truthfully in our Hearts

Help to shape us to be ready, willing and able to reap what you have sewn into our souls—the New identity

One built upon your most precious and powerful cornerstone—Jesus, Your Son

May we live fruitfully as children of Grace—fully emerged from the Crysalis into New Life

One realized through the Cross

May death never have its victory upon our lives LIVED truly for You!

In Your Most Precious Name We Pray—

AMEN

For  Wednesday May 28^th, 2014

Today’s Verses Scripture: ⁵⁵“Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?” ⁵⁶The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law.

Observation: If we have put on Christ—taken on New Life; the Old Nature’s ways are put to death. The mirror of sin reminds us of our saint/ sinner potential and what we must strive to continue in formation for Christ’s sake and our neighbors.

Application: We need that conditional “if” in our lives.  We need that uncomfortable mirror of the Law to help shape our hearts to the beauty and purpose of the Gospel. Growing into—being/ becoming children of Grace has its birth pangs.  These birth pangs are from the Law which forces us to reflect, confess, repent and renew daily—this is our daily path of remembering our Baptism, sanctification & justification.  Justification by faith through Grace.

Prayer:  Heavenly Father,

Help us to comfort the afflicted as well as afflict the comfortable

With that tension our hearts need to grow-and-go with the Gospel

May we hear that conditional “If” as our challenge to be transformed to conscientiously

Choose GRACE as the spiritual fruit we need to live by

May we never become comfortable to the empty promises of the evil one

Or afflict our will upon others in false righteousness

Help our hearts to realize the magnificent victory the cross and resurrection of Your Son

Has had in our lives—We ARE free to be/ become children of Grace, living Grace

In Your Most Precious Name We Pray—

AMEN

For  Saturday May 31^st, 2014

Today’s Verses Scripture: ⁵⁷But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.

Observation: The Totality of Christ is victory for us—our saving GRACE, Praise God.

Application: The song of Praise upon every disciple’s lips and truly in their hearts IS that Christ Jesus defeated Sin, Death and the Devil upon the Cross.  We are children of GRACE to be/ become bearers of Grace to the world through Loving God and Neighbor.

Prayer:  Most Gracious and Merciful God,

May the voice of our hearts grounded by Your Grace

Be and become truly and truthfully bearers of GRACE as acts of love to You and for our neighbor

Help our lives to shine with the victory your cross impacted upon us

Help us to continue to fight evil in all we say and do through Your Holy Spirit’s guidance

May we live cross-shaped lives disciplined by Your Word and obedient to Your Son

May our lives never not be grateful for your victory of GRACE

In Your Most Holy And Blessed Name We Pray—

AMEN

For  Saturday May 31^st, 2014

Today’s Verses Scripture: ⁵⁸Therefore, my beloved, be steadfast, immovable, always excelling in the work of the Lord, because you know that in the Lord your labor is not in vain.

Observation: Stay the course, intentionally and obediently persevere and continue to be optimistic in all that you do for the Lord; for nothing you do in His name through your faith is ever futile!

Application: When the world makes our efforts as the church seem futile or of secondary importance is when you need to be stronger than ever not to be discouraged by Satan’s stumbling blocks.  Nihilism is the fruit of a graceless wilderness.  Remember always that you are a child of Grace, beloved by God whose will and precepts never offer a “dull” journey to those who stay the course!

Prayer:  Dear Jesus,

May our hearts always persevere in the midst of challenges

Always knowing how your Love and Grace strengthens and fuels us to always be assured

Assured in the face of Satan’s efforts to create a graceless wilderness

May we live into that great foundation—immovable, unshaken by evil & purposelessness

May we know through You, living for you and for neighbor that nothing we do has no purpose

Your Grace guides and shapes us for each and every turn in our discipleship journey

May we always know and grow in our faith to realize how you are at the very center of our lives

You are our purpose!

In Your Most Precious Name, We lift our prayers and praise to.

AMEN

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